Reducing plastic usage in the kitchen with fabric beeswax food wraps

Two woman-owned companies are making reusable, compostable beeswax-infused fabric food wraps to replace plastic wrap.

[su_dropcap style=”flat”]L[/su_dropcap]ike many people, we’re trying to reduce our use of single-use plastics. We’re shopping with reusable bags, carrying refillable water bottles and avoiding straws when possible, for instance. So when we heard (belatedly, perhaps) about beeswax fabric food wraps, we were excited.

Beeswax wraps are a reusable, compostable alternative to plastic wrap. Made with cotton fabric infused with a mix of beeswax, jojoba oil (made from the seeds of the jojoba plant) and tree resin, they can be used to wrap and store foods, then washed and reused again and again. When they finally wear out—after about a year of regular use—you can compost them in your garden.

We first heard about beeswax food wraps last spring at the International Home + Housewares Show, where we met Sarah Kaeck, founder of Bee’s Wrap. The mother of three—who has been, in her own words, “an avid gardener, milker of goats, keeper of chickens and seamstress”—started making her wraps in 2012, in her home in Vermont. These days, Bee’s Wrap food wraps are still made by hand, in Vermont, but by a team in a commercial facility.

Z Wraps are made in neighboring Massachusetts (is there something in the water in New England?). We caught up with Z Wraps founder Michelle Zimora at the summer One of a Kind Show in Chicago. She made her first beeswax wraps in her kitchen one night in 2017 and sent her girls to school the next day with their sandwiches wrapped in them.

Both companies make their wraps in multiple sizes—small, medium, large and baguette-sized—from cotton fabrics in multiple colorful patterns designed specifically for them.  They’re available individually or in multi-packs. To use the wraps, you simply wrap them around whatever you’re storing. The warmth of your hands conforms them to the shape of what you’re wrapping, and the slight stickiness of the waxy surface helps them hold. They can go in the fridge or freezer too. After using a wrap, hand wash it in cool, soapy water and let it air dry.

When the wraps have finally lost their waxy properties—after about a year of regular usage, according to Bee’s Wrap’s Kaeck—just compost them.

Beeswax wraps won’t completely replace your plastic wrap—they can’t quite achieve that clingy, airtight seal. But they’re perfect—and more festive looking—for lots of everyday uses. And if you want to cut back on plastic in your kitchen, you’ll just feel good using them. You can buy them online from each company’s website and find retail locations for them there. You’ll find Bee’s Wrap here and Z Wrap here.